The Crown

I like a Southwark pub there’s always an extremely odd mix of people in them and I enjoy it! There’s a few magistrates, a few suits, a few gay men, and a handful of lost looking tourists from South Bank. Great people watching spot.

UPDATE JULY 2013: After having a bunch of dire experiences at the Crown, I’ve just been back for the first time in ages. It seems to be under new management, and the service was much improved. Food is less ambitious, but still decent pub fare, and the beer garden has been expanded. So thumbs up
Original post from a year or two ago, when under different management:
Another awful afternoon at the Crown. I want to love the Crown: it’s a lovely roomy boozer, big light windows, tradiitonal wood, loads of room, comfy chairs, a nice quiet little beer garden, and an ambitious menu of proper American-​themed food and beers. No wonder my colleagues and I sometimes think, hey, let’s pop round the corner and drink some Sam Adams or some Californian pale ale and have a burger in our lunch hour. But it’s been a mistake every time.
Every single time.
The Ring is smaller, the Lord Nelson is more shambolic, the Union Jack isn’t as nice but they’re all a superior choice.
Every time, the attitude in the Crown messes it up. They refuse to believe they’re serving lunchtime trade lord knows who they think they ARE serving. They insist on table service, which is nice when you’ve got all the time in the world but adds quarter of an hour on the start and end of every lunch. And there’s a ruckus every time we go to pay because they present us with one bill again, fine in a restaurant, but not in a pub catering to the local lunchtime trade.
This time, 8 of us went on a Friday afternoon. We ordered our meals, and they’d run out of chicken burgers (even though the place was half full, at 12.30) so 2 of us had to order something else. The 2 of us chose something else and when they arrived, the 2^nd choice burgers were wrong as well. We were both missing the onion rings that were supposed to come with our burgers. I pointed that out and was brought a tray of onion rings but not the other person. When we later realised, I pointed out that he hadn’t received his onion rings, and was bluntly told we were supposed to share. We were at opposite ends of a table of 8!
While we’re on the subject, the cheesburger I was served had slices of dry, cold cheese on it. Thanks.
As always, the bill was an issue. When we asked to pay separately the manager looked at us if we’d just kicked her cat, as if no-​one had EVER had the temerity to ask such an outlandish request before even though we have this argument every single time we’ve been there. Then she made us work out our own payments! I complained about the mistake with the order, and even though knocking a drink off the bill is standard for such shoddy treatment, I was bestowed £2 off with a sneer. Another pub lunch ruined.
Oh, and there’s an ugly plastic food waste bin sat next to our table that staff blithely scraped food into throughout our visit.
The Crown is an amazing pub. But the delusions of grandeur of the surly management at this lovely pub make it a chore to visit, every time. They think they’re a destination gastropub when they should be happy being a nice officeland boozer on the Blackfriars Road. It’s ruined every single visit. The pub is right. The food is right. The booze is right. It’s the management that needs to sort themselves out. Such a shame.

Its been taken over by «Big Phil» and Donata in Nov 2009 and lots of refurbishment, so that the beauty of the large rooms, woodwork and atmosphere really comes out in a clean, welcoming space. Did not check out the beer gardens, as it was pxxsing with rain but really enjoyed an evening of live music with band the VBs — rather fine, adding amazing guitars to every song they did. Big Phil promises some more live music in 2011. Did not try the food, but the beers were good and he says more will be added in coming months. Staff were friendly, motivated and professional. I was in no rush to leave at all (I prefer wet on inside to wet on outside) and staff and owners were also not in hurry. I look forward to returning. Check out their website
for more.

Great pub with cosy seating indoors and a quaint garden out back.
The food is usually good and the menu changes regularly.

Odd one this. The pub itself is really nice kind of old and new. The food is pretty decent — good nibbles. There is a room upstairs you can hire out for free and there is a nice beer garden outback. Good place to meet a group of mates in. But the staff (always) seem unhappy and have done for quite a while and even when there are 15 plus people in they start stacking the chairs up around your ears at 10.30. i don’t understand it it coul dbe a real success. Don’t let it stop you going but don’t plan for a lock in! Head down to the ring (open til 12 from Thurs) and then the Pit bar — not that I’ve been out late night drinking round here ever.